Two people suspected of being part of a “terrorist” organization that planned a bombing that would benefit Ukraine have been arrested in the southwestern Volgograd region, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSS) said today, as quoted by AFP.
The suspects admitted that they “come into contact with the leaders of the terrorist organization National Socialism/White Power (NS/BS), which operates on the territory of Ukraine,” the FSS said in a press release.
This neo-Nazi group, founded in Russia, has been declared “terrorist” by the Russian authorities. According to the FSS, the two arrested admitted to sharing “ideas of racial and religious superiority” promoted by the organization.
According to the investigative commission, the two detainees, whose names have not been released, are 17 years old and live in the city of Volzhsky, Volgograd region.
They “received detailed instructions on how to make a homemade bomb” and wanted to target a police station, a military base, as well as “restaurants and gathering places” in Volzhsky, the FSS said.
Between March and November 2023, the two “damaged, on the orders of their Ukrainian guardians, sixteen vehicles bearing symbols of support” for Russia’s large-scale offensive against Ukraine, the same source said.
According to the FSS, they attacked “vehicles of people from the North Caucasus and Central Asia”, who often fall victim to xenophobia in Russia, BTA reported.
Weapons, ammunition and an improvised bomb were confiscated from their homes, the press release added. In the computer of one of them, FSS agents also found a table with an alleged price list for sabotage on the territory of Russia, TASS adds. The two arrested could each receive 20 years in prison for “participation in the activities of a terrorist organization.”
